Ranieri hits out over Super League talks
CLAUDIO RANIERI has insisted proposals for a European Super League show weakness from the established elite and any such competition would run contrary to the spirit of sport.
Executives from Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool held talks in London this week with Charlie Stillitano, an American businessman keen to set up a Champions League rival reserved for the continent’s richest clubs.
Stillitano has suggested Premier League leaders Leicester, and other clubs not traditionally involved at Europe’s top end, would be required to generate revenue. Ranieri joked ‘maybe next time our sporting director will also be there’, then made a passionate argument against any closed-shop breakaway.
‘People must think what the fans want, not only about money,’ said the Italian. ‘Because culture and the fans are more important than other things.
‘All fans want sport to be very clear, for there to be respect for everybody. I understand bigger teams want to get money and don’t want one year without Champions League. But this is sport.
‘For one year you don’t achieve this, you want to make something different? It’s not right. You are afraid. You are not strong. You are afraid to lose money. It’s not good for the sport. They have to blame themselves. They should ask: “Why is a little team like Leicester doing better than us?”’